


Makeup, Mecha Strike III, and Marichat

by ItsNotYouItsMimi



Category: Miraculous Ladybug
Genre: F/F, F/M, Gamer AU - Freeform, Gay, M/M, Marichat, Multi, beauty blogger au, dont answer that we all know the answer is no, have fun kiddos, is there anything i write that Isn't gay, this is probably only going to be 3 chapters so i Wanna Make Them Count, youtube au
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2017-01-27
Updated: 2017-02-02
Packaged: 2018-09-20 04:03:38
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 2
Words: 10,600
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/9474902
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/ItsNotYouItsMimi/pseuds/ItsNotYouItsMimi
Summary: Adrien and Nino start a beauty/makeup channel, and Marinette and Alya start a gaming channel. Somewhere in between lies Marichat.





	1. The Makeup

**Author's Note:**

> i said this in the tags but this will probably only b 3 chapters; one for the makeup, one for the mecha strike III, and one for the marichat,,, but IDk what will happen
> 
> warning: there's a fair amount of rarepair, poly, and lgbtq+ ships in here.. it ain't just about the marichat my dude.. so be prepared

"Bro. My dude." Nino clapped Adrien on the back, and he staggered forward slightly. "Bruh, your makeup is fucking CRISP. What the hell? I didn't know you were so good at makeup!"

Adrien blushed, and the rouge he sported increased in intensity. "Uh, you know, well... when you're a model, you get used to wearing makeup."

"Man, I can't even see your pores. What the fuck? This is goddamn magical." Nino inspected Adrien's bedazzled face. "I mean, I always knew you were pretty, but DUDE."

"That's gay," Adrien said.

"Damn straight it is."

"More like damn gay."

They giggled.

"Mate, you gotta do a YouTube video on your routine or something,” Nino urged intensely. “The world's gotta know how to be as fresh as you."

"What, just... like a makeup tutorial?" Adrien was slightly taken aback. He was used to being in the public eye, but he'd never willingly put his face up anywhere-- the prospect terrified him and excited him equally.

"Yeah, dude. You're committing an actual crime right now, depriving so many people of such a nice routine." Nino's eyes lit up; Adrien could practically see the lightbulb over his head. "Hey, will you come over after school today? You can film the video with me!"

"That sounds like fun," he agreed. "I'll ask Nathalie."

"Aight, my man. Oh, look!" Nino pointed at an incoming pedestrian. "It's Marinette."

The girl in question was shouldering her backpack and pouting, kicking a rock down the sidewalk.

"Hey, Marinette!" Adrien called, waving cheerfully.

Normally she would wave back and blush, for reasons he somehow still didn't understand. They'd then have an awkward conversation until class began.

Not today, though. Today was not a normal day.

"Hey," she responded, much more apathetically than usual, and went back to kicking her rock.

"Are you... okay?"

"Me? Yeah, I'm fine. I just lost some of my stuff today and I'm bummed, that was my best needle and my favorite tube of eyeliner..."

"I probably have an extra tube, if you want," Adrien offered. "Of eyeliner, I mean, not needles. A tube of needles sounds horrifying."

Marinette looked up gratefully. "Do you really?" Her face quickly shifted, first to surprise and then what seemed like... bashfulness, and then utter despair. "Oh, god. Why are you so physically attractive?"

"What?"

"Your makeup is hot and I want to die. You look stunning. Nice work."

"Thanks... I guess." Adrien fished through his bag for the tube he'd mentioned, Marinette's comment running through his head. She thinks I'm hot, he thought with glee. She thinks I'm stunning!

"Here it is," he said, handing her the tube.

"I would die for you," she replied, and without warning gave him a very tight hug. Adrien clenched his teeth so as not to cry out; she was surprisingly strong.

"No... problem?"

"I owe you one."

"Hey, don't mention it."

And off she went, toting her bag on one shoulder and digging out a hand mirror from her purse.

"Bruh, you're like, mad blushing," Nino laughed.

Adrien frowned. "But why?"

"You caught up in some shit, bro. You in love."

Adrien's facial expression thereafter could only be described as :/.

 

As Marinette sneakily did her eyeliner and the teacher droned on about symbolism and imagery, Nino tapped Adrien's shoulder and whispered, "Dude, Marinette should be a part of your beauty vlog channel."

"Hold up, hold up." Adrien placed his hand on Nino's shoulder.

"We dem boyz," Nino snickered.

"First of all, it's not gonna be a regular thing. I'm not making a channel for this. I thought we were going to upload it to your account."

Nino shook his head. "Nah. If we did that, people would get pissed because I would only post music and remixes and shit after that and they'd want to see your face some more."

"As if."

"You're like, hella pretty, dude."

"Nino, stop flirting with me."

"No, man, you're my BF. My bro friend."

"Second of all," Adrien continued, blushing again, "I doubt Marinette wants to be a part of that."

"Why?" Nino urged. "She knows her way around makeup. She likes you. Why wouldn't she want to vlog with you?"

"Because she's busy?"

"She doesn't have any extracurricular activities other than class president, dude."

"Okay, well... she probably has to help out around the bakery, though."

"Man, do you just not want her in your video?"

"I do! I do."

"Will the gentlemen please stop gossiping over there, you're missing the lesson," the teacher barked.

"Sorry," Nino called. When the teacher turned away, he whispered aggressively, "I'M NOT ACTUALLY SORRY."

Giving Adrien a clear and dazzling smile, he finished decisively, 

"If you think Marinette won't do it, then I will."

"Wait, really?" Adrien froze in his chair. "You'd actually do that?"

"Why the fuck not? I could definitely learn from you, and I know you love me and my company."

"That I do," Adrien agreed. "Okay, bring a video camera to my house after school. I'll do my routine on you."

Nino pumped his fist. "Heck yeah! I'm gonna be pretty!"

"You already are."

"That's gay."

 

Class dragged on and Adrien restlessly bounced his leg. He'd nearly fell asleep during that class, something he'd been proud to say had never happened before. Yet today seemed like such a mundane and unimportant lesson that he honestly could not bring himself to pay attention.

The second the bell rang, he shot up in his seat and grabbed Nino's hand, tugging him out the door and down and out the courtyard. 

"Woah, man, let me run home and get my camera!" Nino laughed.

Adrien dropped his hand and rubbed his neck in embarrassment. "Sorry, sorry!"

He adjusted his bag strap on his shoulder and watched Nino run back home, waiting patiently for the Gorilla.

A finger tapped his shoulder and he twisted around. Marinette's pretty face smiled at him.

"What's up?" she asked, joining him by his side. He loved how short she was compared to him; she was like a little bug with her adorable freckles and diminutive stature.

"I'm... waiting for my driver, I guess."

"I meant to ask you this this morning, but I forgot, so: would you like to come over today and play Ultimate Mecha Strike III?" she asked, her eyes sparkling hopefully. 

Adrien immediately felt a sharp pang of guilt. Oh, god. "Marinette, I'm so sorry..."

Her face fell, and more regret surged through him. "I'd love to, I really would, but I made plans with Nino..."

"Oh, that's fine then!" she said, her smile returned to her face. "Maybe some other day. I'll play it with Alya, then. Hey, Alya!" she called, waving to her friend.

They happily walked back in the direction of Marinette's house, gossiping and giggling.

Nino promptly joined Adrien, nudging him. "Bro, you've got the I'm-in-love face."

Adrien frowned. "I don't have an I'm-in-love face."

Nino snorted. "Right, and I didn't stay up until 3 last night trying to decide between 3/4 and 6/8 time. What did she do this time?"

"Nothing," Adrien spluttered defensively, heat rising to his cheeks. "She just asked me if I wanted to play video games."

"And?"

"And I turned her down because I'm filming a video with you."

"And?" Nino pressed.

"And that's it. But I keep thinking about her cute freckles."

"Dude, seriously, you're pathetic."

Adrien chewed his lip, looking down.

Nino sighed in defeat. "Whatever, man. Let's go make me pretty." He adjusted his camera and followed Adrien down to his car.

 

"I keep forgetting how big your house is," Nino remarked. "I bet this place could hold 50 regular houses."

"It's dumb, but then again, so is my dad," Adrien agreed.

"Adrien," a deep and condescending voice boomed.

"D-aaAAAAHH," Adrien stammered, clutching his bag to his body. "Hi."

"I thought I told you this boy wasn't allowed in the house," Gabriel Agreste said coldly.

"Screw the rules." Adrien grabbed Nino's hand and bolted for his room, locking the door behind him.  
His father’s distant yelling faded behind them.

"Are you allowed to do that?" Nino marveled.

"No," Adrien replied. "I'm probably going to get grounded. Where do you want to film it?"

"Bro, lets film in on your couch, so we get lots of natural sunlight."

"Good idea." Adrien rummaged through his bag for his foundation, and Nino unscrewed his tripod.

"Video is a go!" Nino cheered. "Come sit on the couch with me, dude."

He pressed a button on the camera and saluted.

"Hello, my name's Nino," he said in heavily accented English.

"And I am Adrien," Adrien added.

"And this is our... vlog," Nino said, pronouncing it like vlug.

"Nino, how do you say maquillage in English?" Adrien whispered, trying to keep the French out of his voice and failing miserably.

"I don't know." He pulled out his phone and started typing.

"We are sorry for our English," Adrien said, fighting off a smile.

"Makeup!" Nino proclaimed. "It's makeup. This is our makeup vlog."

"Nino thinks my makeup is very pretty, so I am going to show you how to do it by putting it on him," Adrien explained. "Okay, turn your face towards me."

Nino complied, and Adrien promptly started laughing. 

"Dude, are you actually going to do my makeup, or...?"

"I'm trying! I'm trying." Adrien took out a tube of foundation, and smeared some on Nino's face. "Okay, that's a good color. Don't move."

"Not moving," Nino said, trying not to move his lips.

Adrien carefully smudged more foundation around Nino's face and used a brush to smooth it out. "Okay, that looks all right."

"Can I see?" Nino looked in the mirror that Adrien provided him. "I look smoother than a baby."

"That's a good thing?"

"Yes," Nino proclaimed. "What's next?"

"Normally I put on, euh... anti-tache. How do you say that in English?"

"Concealer," Nino said, looking at his phone. "I'm just gonna use WordReference while you do this."

"Good idea. I have no idea what I'm saying," he laughed. "But, euh... what was I saying? Ah yes," he snapped his fingers, "you don't have dark circles under your eyes, like I do, and your face is pretty clear, so we don't really need to do that."

"Awesome. What now?"

"Les sourcils."

"Eyebrows," Nino clarified.

"I have a brush here..." Adrien murmured, digging through his bag. "There it is. I'm gonna draw on your face."

"Make me a work of art," Nino mumbled, smiling as Adrien drew on his eyebrows.

"You are a work of art."

"Bro."

"Bro."

Adrien tossed the brush in the air. "That's finished! This next one I actually know the word for."

"What is it?"

"Eyeshadow. But we have to put on a primer first. Stay still." He blotted the primer on Nino's eyelids and then took out the eyeshadow palette. "I'm doing ombré here, because that's what I'm wearing," he said to the camera, "but this works with just one color too."

"And then I do the eye-liner," he continued, chucking the eyeshadow in the bag.

"How many makeup things do you have?" Nino laughed.

"We aren't even half finished," Adrien replied, uncapping the eyeliner.

"Really?"

"No, I'm lying. Ne clinge pas des yeux."

"This is cold," Nino laughed. "It feels funny."

"Keep your eyes open or closed, pick one."

"Okay, okay." Nino closed his eyes, smiling at the sensation of the liquid eyeliner. "Can I open my eyes?"

"No, it has to dry."

"Now can I?"

"Yes."

Nino opened his eyes and looked at himself in the mirror. "I'm so pretty!"

"You're going to get prettier. Now we do the mascara. This one you REALLY can't- um- clinge des yeux."

"Blink," Nino corrected. 

"Yes, that. Don't do that, or you'll ruin your eyeshadow."

"We wouldn't want that, now would we," Nino muttered, smiling again.

"Definitely not." Adrien finished with the mascara with a flourish. "Voilà!"

"Is that all?"

"Not even close, we have to do the contouring."

"What's a contouring?"

"Your face looks flat, we have to fix that. See, we use darker colors where we want shadows and then we use highlights to even it out." Adrien applied the aforementioned highlights and followed up with the darker shade of his contouring pen. "And then we have to blend it..."

"And you do this every day?" Nino asked in amusement.

"Only for the shoots."

"The what?"

"Séances de photos."

"A photo shoot?"

"Is that what it's called?" Adrien made a face at the camera. "You learn something new every day."

"The more you know," Nino said. "Right then, is that it?"

"We have to do your lips."

"Ah, yes," Nino agreed, giving the camera knowing glance. 

"They must look kissable."

"Why? Who's going to kiss them?"

"I would, but then I'd ruin your lipstick. So I won't."

"This feels so weird," Nino laughed.

"You say that about all of them."

"But am I wrong?"

"No..." Adrien finished with the lipstick. "That's everything!"

"I feel like a movie star. Take a photo with me, Adrien."

Adrien dug out his phone and made a silly face, and Nino decided to kiss his cheek. Adrien had not been prepared.

The phone dropped in his lap and he blushed profusely. "I..."

"Sorry, dude, should I have asked--"

"No, it's all right..." Adrien mentally shook his head and faced the camera again. "Thank you so much for watching, if you enjoyed this vidéo then leave a comment and we might do another!"

"If you follow this tuto, you as well can look like an ethereal god," Nino added.

"That's the dream."

"Bye!" Nino gave some cheery waves and blew some kisses at the camera, then got up to turn it off.

"Let me edit this photo so I can post it..." Adrien mumbled.

Nino couldn't help but to notice how Adrien's hands trembled even after he'd gotten up. "Bro, are you sure you're all right?"

Adrien looked up. "Who, me? I'm just thinking about stuff."

"What kind of stuff?"

"Thing stuff."

"That's very specific."

"It's one of my many talents."

"What, being specific?"

"Mhm. What should I caption this?"

"'The Rumor Come Out: Does Adrien Agreste is Gay?'"

"I love it. That's the caption."

Nino looked up, eyes wide. "Wait, seriously? Adrien, your dad is gonna kill you."

"I know," he sighed. "What about 'Best bros forever?'"

"Lame." Nino chewed the inside of his cheek. "It should be '#Adrino2k17.'"

"Perfect." Adrien hit post and dropped his phone on the couch. "Do you think people will like the video, though?"

"Why wouldn't they?" Nino grinned. "You're hot and have an accent. What's not to like?"

"Why does having an accent matter?"

"Teenage girls think it's the hottest thing ever."

"But why?"

Nino shrugged. "Just saying, that's why Dan and Phil have collectively about 13 million subscribers."

Adrien rolled his eyes. "British accents are way hotter than French accents, though."

"Whatever, dude. Just don't be surprised if that's all your comments are."

 

And sure enough, when he checked 3 hours later, the video had already amassed 835 comments, half of which praised their French accents to the gods. 

He promptly called Nino.

"Nino," he said, "why is our account called 'Beauty Boyz?'"

"It's because we dem boyz, Adrien. We dem boyz."

"Whatever," he sighed, jiggling the mouse. "And why do we already have a thousand subscribers and 15,000 views?"

"Cause you're hot and we're French. I told you this would happen."

"You're hot, too."

"Thanks, but you're literally a model."

"Are we... going to do this again?"

"Those comments sure hope so."

"Maybe we should invite Marinette over next time."

Nino clicked his tongue. "Definitely not. You'd get so flustered staring at her and her freckles, we wouldn't be able to do anything."

"That's not true!" Adrien protested, heat rising to his cheeks. "You have this idea in your head that I'm in love with Marinette, but I'm not."

"And why not? I had a crush on her, too, I get it."

"No, you don't," Adrien said, his entire face now becoming red. "I don't have a crush on her! I'm in love with someone else! It doesn't take a genius to see she's attractive, anyone can do that, just because I can recognize that it doesn't mean I have a crush on her!"

"You're lying through your teeth, dude. Most people don't fantasize about someone's freckles."

"I do not fantasize about her freckles!"

"Why are you so dead set about this? What would be so bad about that?"

"It's just not accurate."

"The heart isn't accurate," Nino sang. "Haven't you read any fairytale books? The guy gets the girl by following his heart, not actually ANALYZING the SITUATION."

"Okay, but those books are all sexist and outdated."

"You're impossible."

"I just don't want you to get the wrong idea."

"Is it the wrong idea? Or just an idea that hasn't quite blossomed yet?" 

And on that cryptic note, Nino hung up.

"He doesn't know what he's talking about," Adrien muttered. "Don't you think, Plagg? He has no idea what he's talking about."

"You're allowed to like more than one girl. Or boy. Or non-binary person. Or agender person or any other gender," Plagg said. "I agree, I think you like Marinette. Because you're hopeless."

"It's not a question of liking!" Adrien threw his hands in the air. "I know I LIKE her, but Nino thinks I LOVE her."

"Well, do you?"

"I love Ladybug!"

"And?"

"And she's the only girl that'll ever hold my heart."

"Ah, but Nino can too, is that right?"

"Real funny, Plagg," Adrien retorted sarcastically.

"You think I'm joking, but I saw how flustered you were when he kissed you."

"He took me by surprise, that's all."

"Kid, why are you so determined to not love anyone except Ladybug? If you like Marinette too, that's okay. If you like Nino too, that's okay." Plagg nibbled daintily on his Camembert wheel. "Ladybug shouldn't stop you from having feelings. She should intensify your feelings, if anything; be it for her or for others."

Adrien pondered that. "You're full of an awful lot of wisdom, for a tiny cat that just eats cheese all day."

"Part of the job, kiddo. I transform you, I advise you, I eat cheese. Repeat."

"Sounds fascinating."

"I've got it down to a science."

A pause rested between them.

"Plagg?"

"Yes?"

"Have you ever loved more than one person?"

"Why are you asking me of all kwamis this?"

"You're my confidante, albeit a rather unhelpful one."

Plagg gnawed his cheese, pulling a look of intense thought. "Nah. Don't think so. Doesn't mean it can't happen, though."

"Right." Adrien stood up. "Well, I'm going to bed, then. Goodnight, Plagg."

"It's 9 PM, kiddo."

"I said goodnight," Adrien repeated acidly.

"Whatever. Goodnight."

As Adrien pulled the covers up to his chin, he couldn't help but to feel like he was one puzzle piece short of the full picture.

 

Wednesday arrived, and with it the promise of a half-day at school. Adrien and Nino had decided to record another video and invite Marinette and Alya this time.

The girls glanced at each other and burst out laughing. Nino and Adrien shared a look of confusion.

"Sorry, sorry," Alya giggled, wiping her eyes, "it's just that we were going to invite YOU two to come play video games with us."

"We can't do both at once..." Adrien frowned.

Nino rolled his eyes. "Genius of the year, everybody."

"Let's split up and swap partners," Alya suggested. "I'll--"

"You'll be with me and Adrien will be with Marinette," Nino interrupted quickly. "They can do makeup at his house, I'll play video games with you at yours. Okay? Okay. Come on, let's go, Alya." He grabbed Alya's arm and dragged her in the direction of her house. She barely complained.

Adrien and Marinette looked at each other and blushed. Adrien wanted desperately to call Nino and tell him he couldn't do it, but he knew Nino would see that as Adrien being too embarrassed around his supposed crush or whatever.

"Are you willing to... to come home with me?" he asked tentatively.

"Y-yeah!" she stammered. "No, definitely, I'm okay with that, and I'd- I'd love to film the video with you--"

"Okay, because here's my ride." Adrien took her hand in his and led her to the car.

The entire ride consisted of Marinette awkwardly jamming her hands between her thighs and chewing her lip, while Adrien tried to think of a good conversation piece.

"So do you know any English?" he asked.

"A bit, why?"

"Our channel is in English..."

Her face paled. "Oh, god."

Adrien regretted having said anything.

The car pulled up to the mansion and Adrien opened the door for Marinette. She mumbled a quick thank-you, her head ducked and her eyes averted.

Adrien wondered what had happened to the Marinette who gave him bone-crushing hugs and said she wanted to die because of his makeup.

"So why do you think they wanted us to do this vlog together?" Adrien mused aloud.

"Isn't it obvious?" she muttered, shoving her hands in her pockets. "Alya couldn't be more indiscreet about it..."

"What do you mean?"

"She keeps trying to set you and me up," Marinette muttered.

"Does she?" Adrien marveled. "I didn't even notice."

"Yeah, I know."

Adrien frowned. What did she mean by that?

They walked into the house and into his room, avoiding eye contact the entire time.

"Please have a seat," Adrien said politely, and Marinette scurried to the couch and sat down as fast as she could.

"So, I think I'm going to do a... a tutorial on an everyday routine," Adrien explained. "Is that all right with you?"

"That's fine! That's fine."

"Can we do your routine, do you think?"

"M-mine?" she stammered.

"You always look so nice everyday, why not?"

Poor Marinette couldn't respond for the life of her.

Nino had conveniently left his video camera at Adrien's house, so he simply turned it on and sat back on the couch with Marinette, trying not to invade her space and her couch cushion.

"Hello!" he said, trying to fake a cheery disposition, and did Will Smith-style jazz hands at Marinette. "I have a different friend with me today..."

"My name is Marinette," she mumbled, her posture slouching and her cheeks bright red.

"And she is going to show you how to do her makeup!" Adrien gave a wide grin to the camera.

"M- I'm going to do my makeup? On you?" she repeated, her eyes wide.

"If... that's okay with you?"

"Mm! Of course," she mumbled, and reached into Adrien's makeup bag. 

"Well, the first thing I do is put on day cream..." She applied the cream to Adrien's face, and giggled a bit while rubbing it in.

"This tickles," he chuckled.

Her hands trembled a bit, but she seemed to be smiling against her will as she finished with the cream.

"What next, Fashion Mistress?"

"'Fashion Mistress?'"

Adrien nodded, maintaining eye contact. Marinette's flushed cheeks only deepened in color.

"Well," she began, finally tearing her eyes from his, "then we use some light foundation..."

She used the beauty blender to smooth out the  
dollops of foundation. 

"And I like to do some simple eyeliner, personally..."

"Marinette does excellent eyeliner," Adrien remarked to the camera.

"You stop that. You are distracting me from this very important step."

"How am I distracting you?"

"You are flattering me and making my hands  
tremble."

"I'm sorry to be detrimental to such an essential part of the process."

Marinette pouted. "I do not even know what half of those words mean!"

"That's why I said them."

"I HATE English," she growled, drawing out the "E." "It doesn't make ANY sense."

"You should take Mandarin with me next trimester."

"Absolutely not. I would fail and then I'd die."

"But you'd be in a class with me."

"And why would I want that?"

"Because you love me?"

"You are literally my least favorite person," she scoffed, pronouncing _literally_ as LEE-trah-lee.

"Careful, Marinette, you wouldn't want your perfect eyeliner to be... RUINED!" He ducked out from under the liquid pen, causing Marinette to lose control over it and drop it on the couch. She shrieked and threw the pen at him. "I hate you!" she laughed.

"You love me!" he sang, running and ducking behind the couch.

"Don't make me ruin your carpet!"

"I'd like to see you try!"

"I will throw foundation on all the things you love!"

"You'll be throwing foundation on ME!"

Marinette dabbed her fingers into the foundation bottle and flung it at him. "Take that!"

"Oh, yeah?" Adrien recovered the eyeliner tube from under the couch. "Watch this!" He tackled her from over the couch and messily drew eyeliner cat whiskers all over her face.

"You're the worst!" she accused, but the smile on her face begged to differ.

"You have to have cat whiskers to go with your cat eyes," he taunted.

"Fine, then you'll have to wear them too," she retorted, and grabbed the pen from him, splattering eyeliner all over his face as she tried (and failed) to replicate the whiskers he'd drawn on her.

"I feel like it's couture," Adrien said, smirking at the the camera. 

"Wasn't this supposed to be a serious vidéo at one point?"

Adrien flapped his hand. "Tomato, tomahto."

"I do not think you are using that phrase correctly."

"I think this is a good place to end the vidéo."

"I think you are right."

They put the caps back on the beauty products that they'd used and sat down in tandem on the couch.

"Thank you for watching this vidéo... I hope you learned something from it!" Adrien smiled.

"What could anyone possibly learn from this vidéo?" Marinette giggled. 

"How to draw excellent cat whiskers?"

"No offense, but these cat whiskers are exactly the opposite of excellent."

"I'm ap-paw-led that you'd think that. Take it back right meow."

She rolled her eyes. "Puns? Really?"

"I'll have you know that I'm an ex-purr-t in cat puns, and I whisk-er that you'd ap-purr-eciate them more, because they are truly a higher art form..."

"Okay, the vidéo is over. That's it." Marinette stood up and marched off-screen.

"Oh, come on, Marinette! Can't we... _make up?"_

Marinette froze, and then turned around on her heel, coming back on camera to say, "Adrien Agreste, everyone."

"Okay, now the vidéo is REALLY over, because I can't think of any more cat puns," Adrien admitted. "Goodbye!"

"Praise Hawkmoth," Marinette sighed, glad to be done with English and Adrien's dumb puns.

"How rude of you... you should learn some chatiquette," Adrien punned.

"Don't make me come back tomorrow and draw cat whiskers on you AGAIN."

"That would actually be quite lovely."

Marinette's eyeliner-covered cheeks were filled with red yet again.

Adrien turned off the camera and brought it to his computer. Thank goodness that he'd spent so much time making cheesy Ladynoir AMVs to Every Time We Touch by Cascada, as he was now a veritable pro at video editing.

"Are you going to edit that yourself?"

"I was planning on it..."

"Can I help?"

Her face was so full of pure hope and earnest, he couldn't possibly say no even if he wanted to.

"Of course. Come pull up a chair."

She obliged, watching intently how he cut up the video into little clips and moved them around.

"Why are you zooming in on my face?" she asked in amusement.

"Because you look so uncomfortable and it's ironic."

"You keep zooming in on random things!" she laughed.

"Yes, that's what the kids like these days." Adrien stuck his tongue out in concentration. "Let me add an ironic bit of Comic Sans text."

"I changed my mind. I don't want to work with you on this."

"Wait, wait, you'll change your mind back after I put this in." Adrien opened up an audio file titled "car_whi.mp3."

"What is--" Marinette's face went slack as she recognized the infamous "Careless Whisper." "Oh my god, I actually hate you."

"That's a lie and you know it."

She simply shook her head and regarded him with a smile. Adrien felt the urge to get off his mind what he'd been thinking about throughout the entire filming of the video.

"Marinette, can I ask you a question?"

"Go for it."

"Why do you sometimes act like you're scared of me and sometimes like you're one of my best friend?"

The minute the words were out of Adrien's mouth, he regretted them.

Marinette blushed intensely, and beads of sweat started to appear on her forehead. "I... I gotta go," she mumbled. "I..."

She stood up abruptly, causing the chair to crash to the floor, and squeaked at the sound. She looked as though she wanted to pick it up and set it upright, but simply couldn't. Her entire body quivered, and she turned and bolted out of the room. 

Adrien made no attempt to stop her, even though his brain was screaming at him _WHAT ARE YOU DOING, MORON, SHE'S PROVING YOUR POINT!_ He had no interested in harassing her, but he couldn't help but to feel even more perplexed than before; what DID warrant Marinette's changing behavior? And why had she run away at the notion of answering to him?

Any explanation that he could fathom made no sense, so he resolved to just finish editing the video and think about the rest later. He only needed to add a bit more Comic Sans text and some additional zooming, and sprinkle in some memes here and there, because who couldn't do with more memes?

 

And as Adrien lay in bed that night thinking to himself of the day's events, Marinette's odd behavior, and trying to make sense of everything else that had happened, there was exactly one conclusion that he kept coming back to; one conclusion that he couldn't deny no matter how hard he tried or how much he wanted to.

_I have a crush on Marinette._


	2. The Mecha Strike III

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Marinette chats with Tikki about her feelings, Ladybug plays video games with Alya, and likewise Marinette plays against Chat Noir.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> i'm sorry this took so long aaa!!! i probably won't update again during february bc its femslash feb and i'm already pretty busy so,, i don't think i can do both at once sorry
> 
> also thanks so much for your nice comments!! i know i don't often reply to them (that's mostly bc i don't want to be annoying) but i promise i read all of them and i appreciate every single one, thank you so much for your kind comments, i'm would die for u my lovely readers
> 
> anyways yeah enjoy this un-beta'd piece of garbage

Marinette wasn't sure what had prompted her to do it.

But whatever "it" was, she regretted it immensely.

Going to Adrien's house alone knowing that the entire exchange would be incredibly awkward was enough risk-taking, but flinging foundation and drawing cat whiskers on her own crush was certainly crossing a border.

The weirdest part, though, was that Adrien hadn't seemed to dislike it at all. He seemed to prefer this misbehaving, heathen version of Marinette better than the reserved and shy Marinette. Which perplexed her, because she'd assumed he would want someone with a personality to match his own: mild-mannered, not outspoken, and chill. 

Then again, she had found Adrien misbehaving to be incredibly hot. It was a side of him that she wished he'd express more often. 

Was that how he felt towards her, then?

She was overanalyzing now, and tried to cut off her train of thought before she had an existential crisis. Groaning out loud, she pressed her hands into her temples.

Tikki's face peered from the semi-opened purse Marinette had slung around her shoulder. "What's wrong, Marinette?"

"I just LEFT, Tikki," Marinette sighed. "I didn't even say anything! I didn't even TRY to offer an explanation! I just bolted and I haven't even texted him to apologize."

"It's okay, you can explain to him next time you see him..." 

Marinette snorted. "Right, let me waltz right up to him with the confidence I don't have to tell him I'm in love with him, and see how he takes it."

"You're very confident!" Tikki protested. "I think you don't give yourself enough credit, Marinette."

"Everything great I do is as Ladybug!" Marinette pouted. "I only ever feel truly confident when I'm in costume, and people aren't judging me for ME, they're judging me as Ladybug. No one thinks Marinette has anything to prove or any ambitions."

"I can tell you that's a lie," Tikki persisted. "When you're inspired, whether it be as Marinette or Ladybug, you do incredible things all the time. The only time you aren't confident and inspired is when you're around Adrien, and-- Marinette?"

Marinette paused from opening the boulangerie door and looked down at the tiny fairy.

"As much as Adrien is a great kid, I really think you shouldn't sacrifice your amazing personality to be nervous around him."

"It's not a choice..." she mumbled, walking up the stairs to her room.

"Isn't it?" Tikki said gently. "I know feelings are not that simple, but in all honesty, you make Adrien out to be a lot more important than he is. You're the most important person in your life, and you should pursue the things YOU want."

"What if what I want is Adrien?"

Tikki made a scrunched-up face. "Is that really your main goal in life?"

"No..."

"Right. And, one more thing-" Tikki flew out of the purse and landed on Marinette's desk. "-to be quite honest, I think the way you act around Chat Noir should be exactly how you act around Adrien."

"Why do you say that?" Marinette collapsed on the chaise. 

"Chat lifts you up and helps you. You feel confident and happy around him. That's how it SHOULD feel for someone you love."

Marinette lifted her head up to stare at Tikki. "Are you suggesting I'm in love with Chat?"

Tikki shrugged. "I'm not suggesting you aren't."

Marinette placed her head back on the chaise. "Why would you think that?" She almost let out a muffled laugh, the idea was so amusing.

"Because around him, you feel how you should around someone you love. Plus, he sure loves _you._ "

"Unrequited love, Tikki..."

"Mmh..." Tikki made a face of disbelief. "I find it hard to believe that you don't have any feelings for him whatsoever."

"Chat's sweet and all, but I just don't-- I can't see us together, and-- I don't have any REAL feelings for him..."

"I'm not supposed to be meddling around with relationships like this, but I can tell you with absolute certainty that you do have feelings, romantic feelings, for him, buried deep down."

"You don't know me."

"I live in your jewelry half the time," Tikki said pointedly.

Marinette groaned. "Whatever, Tikki. I just can't feel as though I'm in love with Chat the way I am Adrien."

Tikki looked directly into an imaginary camera.

 

The rest of Marinette's week was pretty normal, until Alya called her over for an emergency video of Ultimate Mecha Strike III because "the comments section won't freaking shut up about it!!"

Marinette sprinted over immediately and arrived on Alya's doorstep panting and out of breath.

"Come in!" Alya said excitedly. "I have SO much I want to talk about..."

"To me, or in the video?"

"Yes," she said absentmindedly. "Oh, and when you're coming in my room, lock the door, my sisters..."

"I got it." Marinette made a point to click the door locked.

"Okay, let's get this show on the road!" Alya plugged in her screen recorder and hooked it up to the monitor. "C'mere, Mari."

Marinette sat down on the futon next to Alya and nervously button-mashed.

"Welcome back to our two-person Ultimate Mecha Strike III tournament!" Alya greeted the camera. "I am rejoined by the actual love of my life, Marinette Dupain-Cheng!"

"I thought Ladybug was the love of your life," Marinette said.

"Oh my gosh, I just got the BEST idea. What if we had Ladybug play with us?!"

"Why would we do that?"

"Shh, the game's starting." When the cutscreen ended and two-player mode was selected, Alya continued, "Because she's the love of my life, duh."

"I feel cheated. Alyanette is over."

"No, let's do-- let's do Ladylanette! Ladybug and me and you."

"Never."

"By the way, Marinette, our subscribers saw that video with you and Adrien, or so it seems." Alya stuck out her tongue in concentration, trying to pull off an ultimate combo. "They think your English is adorable."

"How did they get ahold of that video?"

"Don't ask me. I WON, FUCKER!" Alya violently threw her controller on the futon and performed a victory dance. Marinette watched in amusement.

"Alya, don't swear."

"Who's gonna fucking stop me, bitch?"

"There are probably eleven-year-olds watching."

"SHIT," Alya said loudly. 

"Come on, babe, best two out of three. And then we play with our feet for hard mode."

"Let's make it into a challenge. If I win, you have to do another video with Adrien, and if you win--"

"I have a better idea. If you win, you play against Ladybug."

Alya cocked an eyebrow. "And if you win?"

"I... do a video with Chat Noir."

"You're a goddamn genius, Marinette."

" _Language._ "

Alya rolled her eyes. "Fine, you're a hecking genius. Happy?"

"Better." Marinette handed Alya's controller back to her. "Best two out of three."

"You're about to be creamed."

"In your dreams."

"Nice rhyme."

"Thanks. I do it all the time."

Alya rolled her eyes. "I see why you want to play against Chat, you both have a really stupid sense of humor."

"I think you're wrong, it's just a rumor."

"Seriously, stop, you're driving me nuts."

Marinette tried her best to keep her mouth shut, but couldn't help herself. "You'd stop me yourself if you really had the guts."

Alya stared deep into Marinette's forget-me-not eyes, both of them forgetting about the game for a moment.

"Is that a _challenge,_ Miss Marinette?"

"It could be, if you're willing to bet."

Alya threw her controller on the floor this time and tackled Marinette, cradling Marinette's face in Alya's hands, and then whispered in Marinette's ear, "Get ready."

"Just do it already."

"Oh my God, shut UP!" Alya leaned in and gave Marinette a nice long kiss; it did its job effectively.

When Alya finally pulled away, Marinette's head was spinning; from happiness, or confusion, or just because Alya had tackled her, she wasn't sure.

"Your mouth tastes good," she said, stupidly.

"Thanks. I brush my teeth."

Marinette tried to shake off the stupor that had come with the kiss, but she couldn't seem to do it. 

And Tikki had said she loved Chat deep down; as if! But what did Tikki know, anyways? Maybe it was secretly Alya she had feelings for; her heart beat frantically against her chest and she couldn't focus, weren't those symptoms of love?

That was exactly how she felt around Adrien.

Tikki's voice rang in her head. _You feel confident and happy around him. That's how it SHOULD feel for someone you love._

And yet, wasn't that how she felt around Alya most of the time?

Marinette clutched her head. She wasn't sure if she was just being a hormonal teenager or if she secretly was in love with her best friend.

"Are you... okay?" Alya asked in concern.

Marinette's heart fluttered. "Yeah, of course, I'm okay! I'm okay." She awkwardly cleared her throat. "We should get back to the game."

"Too late. I already beat you." Alya indicated the screen that Marinette had been aggressively ignoring.

Marinette groaned. "Of course you did."

"Then I get to play against Ladybug!" Alya cheered, but then her face went slack. "You know what, Marinette, I changed my mind. I want BOTH of us to play against superheroes."

"But why?"

"Because I would literally pay to see you play against Chat Noir."

"But _why?_ "

"It'd be goddamn adorable, that's why."

"LANGUAGE, Alya."

"It'd be gosh darn adorable, then, whatever." Alya rolled her eyes and leaned over to boop Marinette's nose. She went cross-eyed looking down at Alya's finger. "Next Akuma attack, you can expect to be playing against Chat Noir."

"I look forward to it," Marinette lied.

"You'd better. Now get out of my house." Alya gently but firmly began shoving Marinette off the futon. "Oh, and say goodbye to the camera!"

"Goodbye to the camera."

"See you on Monday, nerd!"

Marinette ducked out of the room and hugged herself as tightly as she could. Tikki noticed and quickly flew out from her purse to float inconspicuously next to her.

"God, Tikki," she moaned, "I don't know what the fuck's wrong with me."

"Marinette, don't swear," Tikki said reproachfully.

"I don't know what the _heck's_ wrong with me."

"Nothing's wrong with you!" Tikki insisted. "You're supposed to experiment."

"What do you mean?"

"I mean that all teenagers are supposed to be confused about their feelings. That's how it works."

"That's unfortunate, isn't it...?" Marinette finally let her hands fall to her sides. "I wish I could just know who I love and be done with it. I don't know if I love Adrien, or Alya, or Chat Noir-- I'm honestly just so lost."

"You're definitely not the only one," Tikki assured. "You know, I bet you Chat feels the same way-- he certainly loves Ladybug, but I promise you he has conflicting feelings over _you_ as well."

"Me, Marinette me?"

"Don't you remember when he met you as Marinette? He was smitten with you-- and you just thought he acted that way with all girls."

"Doesn't he?"

"Nope. He definitely feels something for you as well."

"That's a little comforting, I guess... but how do you know that?"

"I know lots of things," Tikki said sagely. "I'm really not supposed to tell you these things, but I think it's important that you know."

Marinette couldn't think of much else to say other than "Well, I hope he won't be too intimidated by me when we're playing Ultimate Mecha Strike III together."

 

All that talking about her feelings and wishing she could know all this stuff without Tikki reminding her made Marinette very happy for an akuma later that day. It was much easier to punch away her feelings than talk about them.

She was swiftly joined by Chat Noir, who of course commented on the Akuma by saying, "This looks like a really hairy situation."

"Nice to see you, Chat," Ladybug replied, not bothering to glance back at him. 

"How did you know?" he purred. "Was it because of my unique _chat-risme?_ "

"Or your dumb puns, either/or."

"You love my puns and you know it," he scoffed, joining her by her side. 

"How would you feel if I disagreed with you?"

"Shocked and offended. I thought you knew I consider my puns to be my most redeeming quality."

"I'm only teasing, I do love your puns. But they're certainly not your most redeeming quality."

Chat frowned. "I'm not sure if I should take that as a compliment to my character or an insult to my puns."

Ladybug chose to not say anything, but her mind was screaming obscene and intrusive thoughts like _HOLD HIS HAND AND KISS HIS CHEEK! TELL HIM YOU THINK HIS EYES ARE PRETTY!_ In other words, things she wouldn't speak out loud to save her own life.

"So how should we take out this Akuma?" she asked, deftly changing the subject. 

"Um... well, they seem like some kind of Rapunzel knock-off, so... throw lettuce?"

"Wh... _what?_ "

"Rapunzel means lettuce in German."

"Okay...?"

"So let's throw lettuce."

"Ten euros says that if I do my Lucky Charm now, it won't be lettuce."

"Just steal lettuce."

"Are you condoning theft?"

"It's an emergency!"

"I still fail to see how lettuce will help us in any way."

"Okay, fine, let's cut their hair, then."

"And that'll help how...?"

"They won't have a weapon."

"They probably have a frying pan."

Chat gave her a weird look. "What?"

Ladybug sighed. "Nothing. _Tangled_ reference." She stood up. "Get your Cataclysm ready."

"Ooh, what's your plan?"

"It's a work in progress. C'mon, follow me." Ladybug jumped down to the street, where the akuma was singing.

" _Flower, gleam and glow,_ " they sang. " _Let your power shine._ "

"This is literally just _Tangled_ but in real life," she growled. "This isn't just a Rapunzel akuma, it's a _Tangled_ Rapunzel akuma."

"What happens in _Tangled?_ "

"The protagonist, locked away by her evil stepmother, finds a way to escape the tower and see lanterns by bribing a notorious thief, who is on the run from a horse."

"I... see."

"If you ever do figure out my identity and we start hanging out, I'm going to show that movie to you." Ladybug whipped out her yo-yo. "It's a true cinematic masterpiece."

"You say that as if you want me to figure out your identity."

"For all you know, I do. The weakness is the hair, Chat, use your Cataclysm!"

Chat was staring at her, jaw agape.

"Chat, the Akuma."

"Right! Right, sorry." He summoned his Cataclysm and leapt for the Akuma's long and lustrous hair.

They noticed the crackling sound and drew away their hair at the last moment. Chat's eyes grew wide, and then they shut, because he faceplanted into the pavement where the hair had just been. 

Ladybug cringed. "Chat, are you okay?" she called.

He gave her a feeble thumbs-up with the un-Cataclysmed hand.

Ladybug glared at the akuma and sprinted in its general direction, twirling her yo-yo rapidly. "Eat my yo-yo!" she cried, and tried to lasso the akuma's hair and drag it backwards. It didn't work.

The akuma sniffed in disdain and tried to step on the yo-yo, but ended up slipping and falling.

"Chat, now!"

Chat Noir groaned, face still in the pavement.

"I swear you're ACTUALLY useless," she sighed, and then winced and muttered, "I didn't mean it, I value you very much."

She yanked her yo-yo out from under the Akuma and performed her Lucky Charm, which gave her a pair of safety scissors.

Chat finally managed to get up off the ground and join her again. "That looks... incredibly useful."

"Sometimes I have utterly no idea what goes through my kwami's head. Still have your Cataclysm?"

"You betcha. Are you thinking what I'm thinking?"

"I sure hope so, cause I'm not gonna waste time confirming. Let's go!"

She sprinted aggressively towards the Akuma and lassoed her yo-yo around their waist, tugging them backwards.

"Hey, Lettuce Head!"

The Akuma whipped around and snarled.

Chat slid under, baseball-style, and clawed for the Akuma's golden locks. Instead of disintegrating, the hair merely started turning a sickly neon yellow color.

"Ladybug, a little help?" Chat yelled, for his face was now being pressed under the Akuma's foot.

She focused herself and yanked at their waist, causing them to fly through the air, and she cute off all the hair from the base of the neck and then picked up the satchels that they had dropped during their plight.

She plucked the crown out and smashed it underfoot, causing it to return to a plastic toy tiara.

And as she wiped her brow and sat down on the ground from exertion, she remembered that Alya had promised (read: forced) her to play Ultimate Mecha Strike III with Chat and herself, and groaned.

"My Lady, is something wrong?"

"No, nothing," she sighed, and flopped onto her back.

"May I sit with you anyways?"

"We're about to detransform in a few minutes."

"Purr-ty please?"

"I have no choice, do I?"

"Well, you do, but I don't think you really want me to leave just yet, now do you?" He flashed her a fanged grin. "You love me and my puns, after all."

"That I do." She sat back up and leaned on his side. "What's new with you?"

"With me?" He furrowed his eyebrows. "I don't know. Not much. And you?"

"Tired."

"That's not really new, is it?"

Ladybug playfully shoved him. "Don't act like you're not."

"Oh, no, I am utterly exhausted," he said with a smile on his face. "But you always make my day better."

"And you mine."

"Do you think we could just..." Chat yawned... "stay here and hope no one finds us?"

"We're right in the middle of a very busy plaza."

"Maybe no one will be looking."

Chat's ring beeped and Ladybug instinctively tensed up.

Where was Alya?

"No, you're going, _now_ ," she said.

"But you're so nice and warm."

"I'm also about to detransform."

"That wouldn't be so bad, would it?"

It wouldn't. Ladybug secretly yearned for it. But she'd never hear the end of it from Tikki.

"No, but you gotta go anyways. Up, up." She pushed him gently. "Take a nap when you get home, okay?"

" _If_ I get home."

"Please promise me you will get home this time and not crash in some random bakery."

That had happened too many times to count.

Chat frowned. "I never told you about having done that."

"I have my sources. Come on, go take a nap."

"Gladly." His head rested on her shoulder.

"Not here! Not here! Go, you've only got a minute left!" Ladybug insistently jiggled her shoulder. He didn't move.

She rolled her eyes and gave him a quick kiss. "Now _please_ go home," she said.

He blinked twice.

"Chat, please."

He sighed. "Fine, see you around, My Lady."

He bounded back the way he came.

Ladybug watched him go, then followed suit. Alya would just have to wait until next time to get them to play video games together.

 

_Instant message at 9:35 pm CET between Ladybabe and Chad Noir_

 

**Chad Noir:** seriously how did you know I once slept in the dupain-cheng bakery

**Ladybabe:** I never said anything about dupain-cheng???

**Chad Noir:** FUCK

**Ladybabe:** Chat, don't swear

**Chad Noir:** HECK*

**Ladybabe:** Why do you want to know anyways 

**Chad Noir:** do you know who marinette durian cheng is

**Ladybabe:** no i don't know anyone named marinette durian cheng

**Chad Noir:** i meant dupain and you know it

**Ladybabe:** don't know anyone named dupain durian cheng either

**Chad Noir:** i actually hate you

**Chad Noir:** i used to like you but look what you've done

**Ladybabe:** u love me babe

**Chad Noir:** ...debatable

**Ladybabe:** why were you asking about dupain durian cheng anyways

**Chad Noir:** bc she lives in that bakery

**Ladybabe:** does she now

**Ladybabe:** and does she condone your cat-napping habits

**Chad Noir:** no not really

**Chad Noir:** last time i did that she yelled at me and sprayed me with a water bottle 

**Chad Noir:** idk why

**Ladybabe:** can't possibly imagine why she might do that

**Chad Noir:** me neither!! so strange 

**Ladybabe:** i have hw to do so i'm gonna log off

**Ladybabe:** we'll talk tomorrow right?

**Chad Noir:** ofc my lady  <3

**Chad Noir:** good luck with your homework!!

**Ladybabe:** thanks i'm gonna need it

 

Marinette had utterly no intention of doing homework.

Why? Why had Chat mentioned her civilian form? They had only texted before to inform each other about the whereabouts of Akumas and to share memes. Chat had never talked about any other civilian, ever.

What made him want to talk about Marinette, of all people?

"Tikki, were you being serious about Chat liking Marinette me, too?"

"Why would I lie to you?" she asked, her high voice unusually serious.

"It just seemed implausible."

"People not liking Marinette--" Tikki booped Marinette's forehead. "THAT'S implausible."

"Ha, ha."

"Why did you ask?"

"Chat just randomly brought me up while we were texting, and-- oh, I'm probably reading too deep into this, aren't I? I'm the only civilian he's ever talked about..."

"I TOLD you," Tikki laughed. "He cares about you! He thinks about you!"

"But why? We've only ever met, like, twice..."

"Took you that long to fall in love with Adrien, too."

Marinette figuratively chewed on that.

 

It wasn't long after, perhaps two days, when Alya called to complain about the lack of Akumas. 

"I missed the lettuce one and now I have to wait who knows long to see them again!" she groused. "And Chat Noir didn't even make a reference to the cabbage man from Avatar: The Last Airbender..."

"If you're really upset about that, I could probably call them, you know."

Alya snorted. "You, call Ladybug and Chat? What connections do you have?"

"You'd be surprised."

"Surprise me, then."

"You got it. I'll be right back." 

 

_Instant message at 5:23 CET between Ladybabe and Chad Noir_

 

**Ladybabe:** hey Chat, do you know Alya Césaire?

**Chad Noir:** the reporter girl?

**Chad Noir:** how could I not

**Ladybabe:** well she wants me to play Ultimate Mecha Strike III against her

**Chad Noir:** sounds like fun!!! tell me all about it afterwards

**Ladybabe:** hang on I'm not done yet

**Ladybabe:** she also wants you to play against dupain durian cheng

**Chad Noir:** she wants me to play against marinette???

**Chad Noir:** why does she want that?

**Ladybabe:** dupain durian cheng lost a bet or something

**Chad Noir:** don't call her that , buginette

**Chad Noir:** so when are we gonna play together??

**Ladybabe:** is someone... a bit excited ? ( ͡° ͜ʖ ͡°)

**Chad Noir:** i mean i do like marinette

**Ladybabe:** why, bc she sprayed you with a squirt bottle

**Chad Noir:** no, because she gave me food

**Ladybabe:** i'll tell her to not give you food when you go there then

**Chad Noir:** ah is someone ... jealous perhaps ?? (͡° ͜ʖ ͡°) 

**Ladybabe:** in your dreams, fuckboi

**Chad Noir:** IM NOT A F*CKBOI

**Ladybabe:** ...ok if you say so

**Chad Noir:** i'm serious!!

**Chad Noir:** anyways when should I play against mari

**Ladybabe:** who's mari

**Chad Noir:** WHO ELSE DID ALYA WANT ME TO PLAY UMS3 AGAINST

**Ladybabe:** right sorry

**Ladybabe:** uhh idk ask alya

**Chad Noir:** do you expect me to have alya's number just bc i know her name

**Ladybabe:** ok fine here's her number

_Ladybabe sent you a photo._

**Chad Noir:** thanks babe

**Ladybabe:** bye babe

 

Marinette's phone buzzed about five minutes later.

"Girl, did you seriously give my number to Chat Noir?" Alya demanded.

"No, Ladybug did."

"But you gave it to Ladybug!"

"I'm sorry, Alya. I should've asked--"

"No, no, it's not that! It's just that I can now text the loves of my life! Any time I want! You're the best ever, Marinette!"

"You know... I try."

"I LOVE YOU."

"You're welcome."

The call was ended, but Alya wasn't done yet.

 

_Group chat at 6:44 pm CET between Ladybabe, Chad Noir and Beyoncé_

 

**Beyoncé:** OH MY GOD HI GUYS I'M LOVE YOU

**Beyoncé:** BUT HOW THE FUCK DO YOU TWO KNOW MARINETTE ALREADY

**Chad Noir:** I've had the pleasure of saving her from a few.. undesirable situations

**Ladybabe:** and what does THAT mean

**Chad Noir:** it means I saved her from an akuma calm down miss jealous

**Ladybabe:** not jealous

**Beyoncé:** anyways the plan right now is for ladybug to come over on thursday and while she's playing me, chat will be playing marinette

**Ladybabe:** aaa i'm not free on thursday sorry!!

**Beyoncé:** can you do tomorrow 

**Ladybabe:** sure thing

**Beyoncé:** btw pls tell me if i make you uncomfortable while filming bc last time i filmed a video w marinette i kissed her

**Chad Noir:** lucky

**Beyoncé:** so y'know

**Beyoncé:** feel free to set some ground rules

**Ladybabe:** speaking of ground rules: in this group chat we refer to her as "dupain durian cheng"

**Chad Noir:** we absolutely do not 

**Chad Noir:** don't listen to her

**Chad Noir:** anyways i look forward to playing with mari

**Beyoncé:** did u know that you guys both like really stupid puns

**Beyoncé:** i'm so excited for thursday

Beyoncé: and wednesday too don't get me wrong LB but

**Beyoncé:** i rly wanna see what dumb puns they'll come up with

**Ladybabe:** cool will see you tmrw!!

**Chad Noir:** bye babe

**Beyoncé:** bye babe

 

Wednesday came much quicker than anticipated.

Alya had been an utter chatterbox the entire morning, and would not shut up even when the teacher told her to go stand outside and stop talking, for the love of God, about Ladybug. The teacher had made no difference.

Alya seemed completely and utterly euphoric about playing a simple video game, but Marinette felt sick to her stomach. She hated that Alya was getting psyched just over playing a game with Marinette, in essence; she felt like she was tricking her.

She also kind of wanted Alya to kiss her again.

But she waited, very patiently, until the bell rang, and then promised Alya she'd call her at some point. She then immediately dashed home and transformed.

Ladybug pulled a Spider-Man and swung across the city, or at least across a couple of blocks to get to Alya's house. She then politely knocked on the door.

It was opened immediately and Alya gave her some kisses of greeting, then invited her in for cookies (as she had set up a surprise interview). 

It didn't take long for her to get antsy and decide to just play, so she sat next to Ladybug on the futon and handed her the Player 1 controller.

"Do you know how this game works?" she asked, bouncing excitedly on the futon.

"Pssh, who do you take me for," Ladybug scoffed. "'Course I do."

"Alrighty, let's go!" Alya started the game, and Ladybug suffered as she realized her suit made her thumb slip over the pleather joystick.

"Stop... MOVING so much," she growled.

"You can NEVER catch me. You know what, Marinette had a great idea the other day, did you hear it? She suggested that we play with our feet for, like, a challenge or something."

"Are you suggesting we do that?"

"I'm not not suggesting it. Ladybug, you are unfairly good at this."

"Thank you. It is a skill that took several hours of honing to acquire."

"She saves Paris and plays video games, too," Alya marveled, "what can't she do?"

"I can't drive. Or legally buy alcohol."

"That'll change someday." Alya leaned backwards and groaned. "Oh, my God, I can't believe you beat me."

Ladybug smirked. "Okay, now for the feet."

 

After having beat Alya seven times in a row, Ladybug decided to take pity on her friend and ask to go home. Alya readily complied.

"Don't let Chat forget that he has a date with Marinette tomorrow!" she called, as Ladybug left the house.

It was a good thing her face was turned, as she didn't want Alya to see the look on her face as she heard the word date.

 

Had it really been 24 hours by the time Chat showed up on the bakery doorstep? It didn't seem half that time, yet there he was. 

"Hello, Princess," he said, and she smiled cordially.

"Come in, Chat. Would you like a cookie?"

"No, thanks, you're sweet enough already for me."

The words seemed to be regretted as soon as they were spoken, but he managed a sly grin anyways.

Marinette had a horrible sinking feeling in her stomach.

"Let's save the flirting for when you mean it. Come on upstairs, I have a video camera set up." She turned on her heel and marched up to her room, not daring to look back at him.

She showed him to her chaise and handed him a controller. "Wait a minute while I turn the console on..."

"Princess, did I do something wrong?"

Marinette kept her eyes on the console, but her hands trembled. "No, nothing. Why do you ask?"

"Well, it's just that you seem a bit more uncomfortable around me than usual."

"Why do you say that?"

"Well, I don't know, you just... seem as though you don't want me to be here."

"That's certainly not true."

"Well, do you want me to be here, then?"

"Of course."

"Okay..." Marinette heard the telltale clicking of someone fiddling around on an unoperating controller. "What happens if I win?"

"You get whatever you want, within reason."

"And if you win?"

"The like."

"I see. And are you going to tell me what it is that you are going to get?"

"Nope. You'll just have to wait and see."

"What if I win, though?"

"Trust me," she said, "you won't."

"Cocky, aren't you?"

"Among other things," she agreed.

"All right, I'm ready. Go ahead, Princess."

Marinette switched the camera on and joined Chat. "Hello everyone, I am joined today by my favorite superhero!"

"I'm your favorite, am I?"

"Ladybug's all right, but I think you deserve more love than you do."

"Thank you, Princess."

"Today we will be playing for a mystery prize," Marinette explained. "I don't know what Chat will get if he wins and he doesn't know what I will get."

"Which makes it all much more interesting and risky." Chat gave her a glance. "Question: is my prize allowed to be a lifetime supply of pastries?"

"Sure, if you pay for all of them."

"That's no fair," he complained. "What about a free bag of them?"

"Maybe, if we have leftovers at the end of the day."

"You'd feed me _leftovers?_ "

"Better than nothing, isn't it?"

"By far, but--" Chat frowned. "I think I should get a better prize than _that._ "

"Play well, and we'll see. Best two out of three, or just one game?"

"I want to raise the stakes. Just one game."

"Don't get too sad when you lose miserably."

"You wish. Are you playing as Coccinelle?"

"Yes. Are you playing as the cat one?"

"I don't know why you expected anything different, Princess."

Marinette looked over, seeing Chat's shoulders hunched and all his attention towards the game. 

"I wouldn't take your eyes off the screen if I were you," he warned, his own still glued to the display, "it gives me the opportunity to do THIS!"

He tried to pull off a fancy maneuver, but Marinette pulled up her shield before he had the chance. 

"You're no fun, Princess," he pouted.

"It's not my fault I'm talented at everything I do."

"You're right, but it is awfully unfair. Share the wealth with some of us."

Marinette laughed. "I didn't mean it, Chat, I'm certainly not talented at _everything_ I do--"

"Most things, though," he muttered.

"--and besides, I'm sure you have plenty of skills already."

"Like?"

"Pun-making."

"You're right, I am a real ex-purr-t in that category," he agreed. "I wish that could be a purr-fession, because I'd be a mewlionnaire in no time."

Marinette groaned. "That wasn't an invitation, Chat."

She expected him to keep making puns, but he was oddly silent. She looked over again, and his tongue was now stuck out in concentration.

"Chat, you know you're allowed to provide commentary, right?"

"Can't talk," he said, his b's turning into m's. "I gotta beat you."

"You can _try._ But you'll never succeed."

"Really? Because I just won the game."

Marinette snapped back to the screen, and growled in frustration when she saw that she still had 3/4 bar of health left. "I hate you," she accused.

"You love me, Princess." Marinette could _hear_ the grin in his voice.

"That's debatable. By the way, I just won."

Chat threw his controller on the chaise and buried his face in his hands. "I can't believe I've just been cheated of bakery leftovers," he groaned, voice muffled.

"Was that really going to be your prize? We might not have even had any."

"You would've found a way." He lifted his head up and tilted his head slightly. "Anyways, what's your prize going to be?"

"Let me think..."

"You haven't even chosen it yet? Oh my God, Marinette."

"I had an idea, but I wasn't sure it would work."

"Yeah? What was your idea?"

She looked at him, searched his face, and felt her heart beat in tandem with a certain urge that had been eating at her the entire gaming session.

"I..."

"You...?"

Marinette mumbled a few words under her breath.

"What did you say?"

"I said--"

She inhaled deeply.

"I said I'd like to kiss you."

And before Chat could register that sentence, her lips were already on his.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> thank you so much for reading!! if you enjoyed it please leave me a comment and tell me what you liked about it bc i always love hearing about it!!!!

**Author's Note:**

> come yell at me on tumblr my url is itsnotyou-itsmimi.tumblr.com
> 
> and if you liked it please leave a comment, i cannot tell you how much i appreciate them <3 <3 <333


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